Illuminated license plate construction



` July 2,1, 1931. G'. J. L'APIERRE 1,815,854

ILLUMINATED LICENSE PLATE CONSTRUCTION Y Filed Feb. 1v, :vaso

f vPatented July K4217,119.31.. p i

. GEORGE JQLAPI'ERRE, for 'rnwfruoiznnfnnonn IsLAND,,AssrefNoR or ONE-HALE 'ro eEoRGEQv.; MORIN, oFrAwTcKET, RHODE ISLAND rLLunrNA'rnn LICENSE rLA'rE 'CONSTRUCTION ,YiApplieationiied'rebruary17,11930. serial 'No.j 429,131.

:This invention relates to* certain new and useful improvements 1n- 'anilluminated l1- cense plate construction.Vv

y-`"Iheprimary bject of'theinvention'is tio- 5' provide an illuminated license platel conf struction# designedfas 'ai unit and adapted for mounting upon va supportinggb'racket or other holder similar to the ordinary license 'plate thatv is usually [formed of sheet metalk '1Q with license indicia vembossed thereon, the

present device being'in the form of a casing that is illuminated to render unnecessary the direct association of the license plate with a tail light for illuminating purposes.

tion that'is practically thief-proof iny that tampering or mutilation `thereof in van endeavorto change'the numbersvory license in- ',.20 ydicia willat once be apparent.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a licenseplate construction of the foregoing` type embodyinga rear dished wall and a front flat wallwith an y interposed translucent color .screen flatly engaged with Y the front wall with spacedfofset portions at vthe lower edge of thefront wall to permit v to which the same relates and more partic-y drainage of water that may collect in the license plate construction.

. A still furtherobject of the invention is 'to provide improvements 'in the general art :ularly with referencevtothe S. patent granted to G. J. Lapierre and T. A. Gilligan on /December 25, 1928, No.y 1,696,804, the present inventiony providing aV novel form of permanent connection betweenv the edges of l f the rear ldished Wall andthe front license plate wall with Yan angleoffset in the rear wallV inwardly ofthe edge ythereof for the y better reflection offlightrays from alamp within the devicey to insureillumination of f the entire expanse of license indicia, the per.-

manent connection betweenthe walls being in the form of hollowrivets providing open-r v ings for the passage of securingmeans by which the license plate construction maybe attached to a'bracket orother support.

With the above and `other-objects in view that will become rapparent as the naturey of jf :A further object of the invention is'to provide an illuminated license plate construc- #PTLEN om@ invention is'V better understood,thei'same consistsl in 'the novel construction, f combination and arrangement of parts to be rherein-y after more fully described yand then claimed.v 'ln' the4 accompanyingdra-wings`- which illustrate the preferred embodiment vof the invention and to which reference is hadfby like characters designating corresponding 'parts throughout they several views;

Figure 1 is a front elevationalvew ofan illuminated license' plate construction built yin accordance with the presentjinfvention, Figure 2fis a rearelevationalview of thev Sain@` Showing the; bellowy rivet connection permanently uniting thefront and rear walls ofthe device andthellamp' socket disposed p Centrally of the'reerwau, f i

- Figure 8 isf avertical kcro sf s ec taken 1in@ .3i-'3 0f Figure, 'l ,Showing :the

rearfdished/ Wall carrying the' lamp, fthe at frontA wall'having the licensejindicia'ern-y bodied therein andy the translucent ycolor screeninterposed between the-walls and'flatf,y i y 1y engageawahrhe from, wail, and v f Figure' ,4 S` a detail sectional viewytaken online 4-.4 [of Figure 1 showing an offset .attheloweredge of Athefront wallfordrai'nlA age-3.purposesv and the marginal offset iny warldlyy of the flanged edgevof the rear wall. Referring more'indetail to the'accompany-4r ing drawings,-there is illustrated an illuminated license plate construction ofelongated `rectanggular `form 4similary to anl ordinary.

licenseplate and comprisedof rearand front walls and 6 respectively. f- The rear4 Wall is offdished formation `as shown in -Figuresf2 and 3, with the A,central portion thereof 1 Sia farthest from theyplatefk flattened asgkvatff( y andfhaying 'a ,centrali opening smroundedvk by aflangejS from which springfin'gers 9project'. yfor'the support of allarnp and kS,ocket;lOfroin Svhhjml elelctlfcfconductorf ll .extends for attachment to a source of electric energy and es' f with the front wall 6, license indicia 15 being embodied in the front wall 6in the form of cutout numbers and letters. The opposite ends and upper edge of the front plate 6 carry a rearwardly directed flange 16 overlying the: ends and edges of-the colorfsheet and rear wall to aid in preventing the seepage or entrance of water into the device. v

The two walls,` and lcolor screen are permanently connected togethenb-y the lformation of hollow rivets now t'o be described and these Y hollow rivets provide openings through which fastening devices may be passed in attaching the license plate constructionl to ai 'bracket 4or other support.

Y Spaced openings are formed in the edges` of the color screen 14C and flange 12Yupo`n` tl`1`e'rcap`rl dished wall '5" and lp penings punched through the edges ofthe front wall 6in .line with the aforesaid openings provide hollow rivets 17, the rear edge'sof which arer swagedv over as at 1'la to verlie" the walls of -the' openings in the flange 12 asshown in' Figures 2 and 3 for per manently4 cnniecting the front andy rear walls of the device together.

Y Frein .thef' ab'oife detailed description,- it is let-"slie'ved''thatv the' construction and use' of the device will" at on'ce be apparent, it being I'g'jted'V that tle Casing? structur embodies front and rear wallsv permanently connected it is to beA understood that minor changes may be made in theV details of construction, such as will fall within the scope of the invention as claimed. v k[ claim Intan killuminated license plate construction, front and rear walls r'disposed adjacent each other at their edges and spaced from each other inwardly of the edges, the rear wall being fashioned tosreceive a lai'np, cutout license `indicia embodied in the front plate, an imperforate colorscreen of pyrolin together, with'v i'lluininatingmeans for the casing detachably Vengaged 'withthe rear wall and that the device is to take the ,place ofthe' usual 'flat' y licenseV plate generally asf so'ciia't'edA with the rear light; ofavInotor vehiele.;v p The hollow rivet Connection between thewal'ls'ofthe device providefor the passage -I offast'eningdevice in ,attachingl the saine to a bracketrr' the like and inV View o f such periest rnan'ent connectionbetween the walls, it is practicallyy impossible to separate' thein Y*without detection for the purpose of changing orv mutil'ating the license indicia that is forinedby cutouts' inthe front wall. In view of the intimate contact between the mare ginal edges ofthe walls it is practically irnpossible for water to enter the casing structure, but shuld any-,moisture enterthrough 'the cutout/license indicia, the sanie will seep downwardly; 'between the stencil and ,translucent screen and be drainedfftherefroni through ,the spaced offset portions 18 at the Vlniver''vedge of the front wall 6 as shown in Figures By @he provision ofthe Onset angieV wall portieri 13 yinw@muy of the ,edge

`flange 12 upon the rear wall 5, acute vanglesV at misi-feint are-eliminated so that light-5 rays emanatingffroni thelm'p lO arereflecte'd over t'heentire expanse flce'nse indicia with the resultthat 4the license nuinbers or charactes'adjacentpnne ends f the front wane are as; brightly illuminated as the ones directly in' linelwithfthe lamp.

wane thesis herein shown ,and described 'i' the pre'fe"rre'd.'l einbdi'nient of theinve'nti'n, 

